BIRTHDAY Freebies!

Hello Friends! It sure has been a while and have really missed blogging. Well I want to kick start my return to share with you a few pointers to make your birthday that much more special! February is my birthday month and last year out of curiosity I researched birthday perks. The way it works is that if you sign up with their online "club" (at no charge) they will send you vouchers or coupons around the time of your birthday!

Here are a few of my birthday perks from last year... First I started my day at Denny's with my FREE Grand Slam breakfast. Later that day I redeemed my FREE gift from Sephora, some Benefit Minis (They're Real Mascara and Watts Up Highlighter). This was by far my favorite perk, especially because they were a mini size and is great to just keep in my purse. We then ended the day with my FREE scoop of Baskin Robbins ice cream!

So I am not sure if a lot of you take advantage of these perks on your birthday, but I definitely do and enjoy so much! Here is a site that lists all the places you can receive your birthday perk. My suggestion is to sign up now and not wait until your birthday month. This year I am extremely excited to redeem my ULTA and Sephora BIRTHDAY FREEBIES! I will be sure to post this years birthday freebies on my instagram #makeitcozeebirthdayfreebies.

Happy Birthday everyone and I hope you take advantage of your FREEbies!

$10 DIY Shelf with Hooks

I've been nesting like crazy... Cleaning, organizing and this includes in love bugs room.  I've been wanting to get her a nice shelf to put markers and stuff that I don't want her to have easy access to, but something with hooks to also hold her head bands.  After lots of searching I just couldn't find something I love for the price so I finally decided on a paint your own shelf.  I wish I would have gotten the bigger one but it still came out pretty nice for $10 [and that includes the spray paint].

I got this shelf from Joann's using my 50% off coupon so it came out to $7.  Not a bad price at all. 

The only bad thing is the back didn't have hooks but I have these nail on Sawtooth mounts handy in my tool box.  All you have to do is hammer them into the back, level, one on each end and the shelf is ready to hang. 

Unscrew the hooks before you paint and don't lose them.  I went with a ballet pink of course to match her room.  If you haven't spray painted a ton I would definitely take time to read this.  There are some things you should know about spray painting before doing it to avoid drips, cracks, and to get an even coat.  Oh and be sure to wear a mask so you don't inhale any paint.

After setting it outside overnight to get rid of the lingering paint smell it was ready to hang.

It holds all those crazy headbands perfectly.

Marker's and such where she can't reach.  Inside those plastic bins are stickers and her matching game.  I have to do a little mommy bragging about those cute little creatures taped to the shelf.  She made them 100% on her own.  I helped with with the spider legs but the idea to make these little monsters was her and it made me proud to see her get so creative.

To match the shelf I also gave her art display a little update.  Who doesn't love a little burlap. 

There you have it a $10 dollar DIY mini shelf. 

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Valentine's Day Round Up

I can't believe it is already February 3rd!  You know what that means.... Valentine's Day is right around the corner.  Boy this year is already flying right on by.  Thought I would help you get in the mood by sharing a few things we have done in the past, what I'm planning for this year, and some things I have found online that I love. 

Let's start with the past.  Last year I did 14 days of Valentine's Day for the hubby where he got a special treat until the actual day.  He really enjoyed it and I know it's already the 3rd but it's never too late to start.  I made this felt heart to hold little lady's special treats.  Not sure if I'm going to use this again this year... we shall see.  We made Valentine cards to mail to the grandparent that were so cute.  Probably one of my favorite Valentine crafts.  It's hard to really do a ton considering her birthday is the week before.

Since we aren't having a big birthday party this year I can actually do more for Valentine's Day.  For her school party we are in charge of the juice so instead of just bringing the juice boxes I'm planning on having her help me make these adorable loopy ones.  And to pass out to her friends I thought these lollipop butterflies were perfect.  I really wanted something that she can actually make herself.

We have already been working on a few crafts here and there but here are some I just love and hope we get a chance to do this year.  

If you are looking for something for the hubby I highly suggest you check out The Dating Diva's site.  They are some great ideas to make it a special one for the hubby and not just cutesy ideas.  I am going to pull a few of their ideas for this year. 

There are tons of ideas on my Vday Pinterest board [that's where all these images are from], so if you want to get inspired be sure to check it out!  

Happy Monday everyone.

My Obsession with Bins

It's that time of year, the one my hubby dreads..... spring cleaning!!  I don't know if it's the nesting that is making me go overboard and start early, but I'm not complaining.  It's amazing how much junk you can accumulate in a year, plus after Christmas we usually do an major clean out of toys to make room for the new ones.  Salvation Army loves us during this time of year.  

Each year [unknowingly] I pick an organizing project.  By no means is our house perfect but I try to live by the saying there's a place for everything and everything in it's place.  If there isn't a place for everything it probably means we have too much stuff for our space.... tell that to my craft corner.  Last year it was organizing our pantry and I went crazy for tupperware.  Now that the pantry and my system is in place I have gone bin crazy... baskets, plastic bins, and canvas bins.  

I can be organized without bins, but everything just looks much more neat and pretty with them so I'm willing to spend the money.  It can get expensive so I'm doing it little by little and here is my progress so far.  A wire basket under the kitchen sink to hold dish towels and extra place mats.  This one was $8 bucks at Ross.  More kitchen organizing ideas click HERE.  I like keeping my dish towels close by so when I need it I can grab it. 

I added a foe wood basket in the pantry to hold the bulky random extras.  What's in there now?  Bag of potatoes, big bag of extra peanuts, an extra cereal box, extra cereal from the jumbo bag... you get the idea.

In the drawers I added these plastic clear and grey bins I got from Target for a dollar.  The drawer is just the right for the little one to be able to reach her plates and bowls because she is learning to get her own snacks and food. 

And the tall grey plastic bins holds Tupperware lids perfectly and one of them is holding the baby bottles for now. 

I got these blue plastic bins from the dollar store, 2 for a dollar.  They hold measuring spoons perfectly.  As you can see this drawer still needs more work.

The blue bins are also perfect for the bathroom drawers.  They long skinny ones hold nail polish and nail stuff.  The square ones hold my make up.  

The key to organizing and staying organized is making sure everything is easily accessible and easy to put back.  The last thing I want to be doing is digging in a drawer trying to find a clip for my hair. 

I've also picked up some canvas bins for inside our linen closets.  I saw these in Better Homes and Garden about a year ago and I have wanted them since.  I found them at Walmart for $8.  They are so new I haven't even labeled them yet.  I put a big one and a little one in the laundry room.  

They perfectly hold sheets.  

I only use fitted sheets so I fold that, and whatever pillow cases go with the set and put everything inside a pillow case.  It makes changing sheets easy since everything is in one place. 

I do the same for her the little lady's sheets.  The little bin holds her sheets, crib sheets, and pack and play sheets. 

The downstairs storage closet is housing all the baby's goods. A bin for extra blankets and swaddles.

A bin for extra burp cloths, extra diapers, and extra packs of wipes.  

I'm crazy in love with canvas bins right now... oh the possibilities! 

What organizing projects are you working on right now? 

Happy Wednesday everyone!